The Los Angeles Lakers reportedly already have a contingency plan in place for the eventual retirement of LeBron James, and it’s a major swing for the fences.
“I’ve reported on this podcast and on The Ringer how they have their sights set for Luka [Dončić] in the future,” The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor said Friday during The Mismatch (0:50 mark). “We’ll see if that works out. Dallas just made a Finals, Dallas is looking better than ever with their supporting cast. That may not work out, but the Lakers by not trading their future picks clearly are still thinking long-term at this point. They’re not going all in like you might expect many teams to do with James.”
It’s unknown how much longer James will play, though he’s shown little sign of dramatically slowing down—he averaged 25.7 points, 8.3 assists and 7.3 rebounds in 71 games for the Lakers this past season. Not too shabby for a 39-year-old.
One of his late-career goals was playing with son Bronny James. He’ll have a chance to do so after the Lakers selected him in the second round of this year’s NBA draft. It’s certainly possible that after living out that particular dream, James could decide that he’s accomplished basically everything he wanted to in his career and call it quits.
When he does, it will be one of the most decorated careers in NBA history. Four titles. Four league MVPs. Twenty All-Star Game appearances. The most points in NBA history. Fourth all-time currently in assists, though he could probably get to No. 2 depending on how many years he decides to remain in the game.
His legacy is assured. What is far less assured is how the Lakers will pivot once he’s done with the game.
Anthony Davis doesn’t appear to be going anywhere, but he never proved to be the sort of superstar who could be the true No. 1 for a championship contender. He will need a high-profile superstar to join him.
It doesn’t get much better than Dončić, who was the NBA’s scoring champion this past season at 33.9 points per game, to go along with 9.8 assists and 9.2 rebounds per contest. He led the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA Finals alongside Kyrie Irving, a duo that should only improve with more time together.
The Mavs will do everything in their power to keep Dončić in Dallas for the entirety of his career, a la Dirk Nowitzki. But don’t be surprised if the Lakers try to foil those plans.
